Chapter Wreck to Wring of W by Webster's Dictionary (1913 Edition)

1. The act of wresting; a wrench; a violent twist; hence, distortion; perversion. Hooker.

2. Active or moving power. [Obs.] Spenser.

3. A key to tune a stringed instrument of music.

The minstrel . . . wore round his neck a silver chain, by which hung the wrest, or key, with which he tuned his harp.

Sir W. Scott.

4. A partition in a water wheel, by which the form of the buckets is determined.

Wrest pin (Piano Manuf.), one of the pins around which the ends of the wires are wound in a piano. Knight. — Wrest plank (Piano Manuf.), the part in which the wrest pins are inserted.

Wrester
(Wrest"er) n. One who wrests.

Wrestle
(Wres"tle) v. i. [imp. & p. p. Wrestled ; p. pr. & vb. n. Wrestling ] [OE. wrestlen, wrastlen, AS. wrstlian, freq. of wrstan to wrest; akin to OD. wrastelen to wrestle. See Wrest, v. t.]

1. To contend, by grappling with, and striving to trip or throw down, an opponent; as, they wrestled skillfully.

To-morrow, sir, I wrestle for my credit, and he that escapes me without some broken limb shall acquit him well.

Shak.

Another, by a fall in wrestling, started the end of the clavicle from the sternum.

Wiseman.

2. Hence, to struggle; to strive earnestly; to contend.

Come, wrestle with thy affections.

Shak.

We wrestle not against flesh and blood.

Eph. vi. 12.

Difficulties with which he had himself wrestled.

M. Arnold.

Wrestle
(Wres"tle), v. t. To wrestle with; to seek to throw down as in wrestling.

Wrestle
(Wres"tle), n. A struggle between two persons to see which will throw the other down; a bout at wrestling; a wrestling match; a struggle.

Whom in a wrestle the giant catching aloft, with a terrible hug broke three of his ribs.

Milton.

Wrestler
(Wres"tler) n. [AS. wr&aemacrstlere.] One who wrestles; one who is skillful in wrestling.

Wretch
(Wretch) n. [OE. wrecche, AS. wrecca, wræcca, an exile, a wretch, fr. wrecan to drive out, punish; properly, an exile, one driven out, akin to AS. wræc an exile, OS. wrekkio a stranger, OHG. reccheo an exile. See Wreak, v. t.]

1. A miserable person; one profoundly unhappy. "The wretch that lies in woe." Shak.

Hovered thy spirit o'er thy sorrowing son,
Wretch even then, life's journey just begun?

Cowper.

2. One sunk in vice or degradation; a base, despicable person; a vile knave; as, a profligate wretch.

Wretch is sometimes used by way of slight or ironical pity or contempt, and sometimes to express tenderness; as we say, poor thing. "Poor wretch was never frighted so." Drayton.

Wretched
(Wretch"ed), a.